I thought for this week’s happy hour Friday post, I’d kill two birds with one stone. I’ve never ridden the Staten Island Ferry and I’ve never gone to Staten Island. I read where they serve beer on the ferry, so the happy hour can start there and then we’ll see if we can find a bar within walking distance. I’ve heard the view from the ferry is fantastic, so let’s go find out.﻿

And here we are at the Staten Island Ferry, I'm not quite sure what to do, so let's just walk in and see what's happening inside.

I had only walked about five minutes when I saw this sign. It's just around the corner...

Here it is, Steiny's. Looks like a nice place, let's check it out!

There's a nice neighborhood vibe in here and plenty of seats at the bar.

And here's Gina, the friendly and pretty bartender with a cold beer. Let the happy hour begin!

Here's the view of the bar from my perch.

There's polished wooden tables and stools opposite the bar.

They keep the glasses on ice here at Steiny's.

Gina got a phone call and when she was done she walked over and said, "You're not going to believe this, a woman called and asked if someone named Marty was drinking in the bar." Gina then told her I was there and the woman said she was coming over shortly. I have to admit that this both intrigued me and scared me a little. I don't know anyone in Staten Island, so I could only guess she knows me from one of my blogs. But how did she know I was in there? I ordered another beer...

And Susan showed up at the bar and said hi to me. I was glad she didn't look like a crazy woman and it turned out she followed the 365 Bar Crawl. She works up the street at the Court House and saw me taking a picture of the sign and thought I was probably going to Steiny's and called. Too funny! We had a beer and a nice chat about the 365 bar blog, Staten Island and New York City. She's really nice and I was honored to have been recognized!

Here's a co-worker of Susan's, Robin being served a beer by Gina. It's a friendly crowd in here!

After a couple beers, Susan had to hit the road to get home to her sons, so I had a few more beers and snapped an obligatory mirror shot at the bar.

And night falls, so it's time to hit the road and take the ferry back to the city.

The timing was perfect the ferry was just loading.

There was more room to move outside on the way back and I tried taking some pictures, but none of them were turning out, so I took a couple shots of other people taking photos. He's snapping one of the Statue of Liberty.

Here's someone getting a photo of us getting closer to the city.

Exit, stage left and we're back in Manhattan.

I like the sign a lot better here at night. Have a great Friday, everyone!

I love the photo of Gina, the TWM card, the Bud bottle, and you in the background in a inadvertent obligatory bar mirror shot. Brilliant ! also very cool that Susan tracked you down ! Steiny's looks like a great place. I only drove through Staten Island once by mistake. I've never been on the ferry either, nor had a drink on the Island. Now that you've pointed the way for the BBC -- we will have to do it sometime ! Great job !

Marty, That twilight zone shit with Susan on the phone was weird, but very cool. Ahhh, Staten Island, my Mom was born in Stapelton, Staten Island. I haven't been back since I played there with the Contusion's in the 90's.Marty next time go to Jade Island, David Johansen took Anthony Bourdain there on No Reservations. It's a great Tiki Bar restaurant.

@Jason: That's one of the things I like about doing this blog, it forces me to get out of my comfort zone and do things. It was a great time!

@Bobby D: I don't think I need the entourage just yet, but it was great to meet Susan and everyone at Steiny's!

@GENE: That was too funny being recognized by Susan, a fun experience! And yes, the BBC should do the Staten Island Ferry, it's a quick trip, beer on board and Steiny's is just a five minute walk away!

@Danny the Freelancer: It was cool that Susan took the effort to say hi, lots of fun and always nice to meet someone who follows the blog. I'll check out Jade Island soon, if it's good enough for Johansen and Bourdain, it's good enough for me! Thanks for the tip!

So there’s this young lady on the Brooklyn bridge, about to commit suicide. A sailor sees her as she is about to jump and shouts "Wait! Don't do it! I'm leaving on a ship to Europe. I'll sneak you on board so that you can come with me and start all over!""Okay, I guess so" the woman says.So he sneaks her on board and stows her away. Every night he brings her food and they have sex all night long. This goes on for 3 weeks.One day, the captain stumbles across her in her hiding place. "What are you doing on board?" he demands."Well, I have an agreement with one of your crewmen. He is taking me to Europe; every night he brings me food and then we screw.""You're certainly being screwed," said the captain, "this is the Staten Island Ferry!"

Wow, Marty, you've done ALL FIVE BOROUGHS! It's Miller time! When I first moved to NYC in 1984, my sister (upon whose bedroom floor I crashed for a few weeks til I found a job and an apartment) took me on the Staten Island Ferry. As we sailed into the harbor, she started humming the bass line from the theme song to "Barney Miller", and it was exactly the same image as the credits for that show! To this day I can't ride the ferry without that playing in my head...

I'm glad Susan turned out to be normal and she didn't try to boil your bunny or lure you to her place, shoot you full of drugs and break your feet with a sledge hammer while screaming; "I'm your number one Fan!" You never can tell nowadays...

It's only a matter of time, Marty, before you start getting chased by dozens of screaming fans every time you go out on one of your Trips, like the Beatles being chased in "A Hard Day's Night." Unfortunately, though, it won't be teenage girls chasing you, it'll be middle-aged folks with beer-bellies and bent elbows, hoping to get a chance to hoist a cold one with their hero.

@Al: It was well worth the trip to meet Gina and Susan and everyone else at Steiny's! I don't know if that's McCartney in that photo or not. Just a random shot I took from the internet.

@Duncester: I did the typical tourist thing! I will be riding the ferry again though and I'll try it then.

@sammy: I was one of those people that never left Manhattan, I'm correcting all that with this blog! I really liked it there and will return, I want to check out that Tiki restaurant that Danny the Freelancer commented about.

@roadsidewonders: Ha ha ha! I second that nomination! And as Regional Director you're entitled to a free beer or three when you finally get here to New York!

Every summer Mrs. Spike and I get a group of 20-30 people and go out to a Staten Island Yankees game. Over the years, I think I've actually watched maybe 3 innings combined as we just goof around and drink beer with the gorgeous view of Manhattan as the backdrop. We always hit a bar beforehand and last summer we tried Steinys out. Very local, working class bar. Loved it. We usually went to Cargo Cafe, which I just read is now closed, and a new bar was supposed to be opening in it's place. But Cargo was a great spot too. The first time we went to Cargo, maybe six years ago, a friend took us there not just for a beer, but for the most incredible, awe-inspiring painting on the wall:BEHOLD!Yes indeed, that's former Mayor Rudolph William Louis Guiliani atop a stead, slaying the demons in the rubble of the Twin Towers. The next time we made it, the painting was gone unfortunately, and oddly enough there was one of Che Guevara up, so I'm thinking new owners just maybe??

Anyways, I'll let you know when we plan on going this year Marty (and all the other listeners here), would be fun to get a TWM-Beer-n-Baseball extravganza!

Back when I was a high school kid in the early 1960s the Staten Island Ferry was just a dime, and for free coming back to Manhattan. I used to ride it many times when I cut out of school, seems the truant officer was never on board, or at least never I was caught on the Staten Island Ferry. How much is it now, I'm sure not a dime?

I've never been to staten island either.. well now i guess i am the only one...my mom swear she took me.. I had to remind her she has pics of my brother and her there.. they didnt take me on ferry's.. I pukePUKE big time ok...dont even start her on what childhood deseases we had.. she had them all wrong..i was the one who had chickenpox it turns out.not my brother.so i avoided people with it for years for no reason..but there was a bonus.. i didnt have to take care of her when she had the shingles.so anyway.. my brother has been to staten a few times..i will get there someday.. when i get my jetpack!good commenting today..keep up the good work Marty fans!

Wow! Popcorn, beer, and Utz chips to boot! The Staten Island Ferry has it all! And Steiny's looks great too. Gene's right...that photo of Gina and the card is pretty cool. Although I wish she was holding the bottle so it appeared to be smacking you upside the head! No offense.

Thanks for letting me know Steinys exists Marty.Been on the ferry a few times over the years doing the tourist thing.My friend is called Ric Steinbach so next time we are in NY we will have to go visit his near name sake bar.Hopefully Gina will be working that day!

@Gidget: I bet you'd be okay on the Staten Island Ferry, it's pretty calm and doesn't even feel like you're on water, a nice peaceful trip. Let me know when the jetpack arrives and we'll go!

@Biff: It's a floating paradise! You need to ride on it next time you come, add that to your massive list of things to do! And next time I go, I'll see if Gina will smack me with the bottle, anything for you, Bifferoonie!

@Alan Simpson: Steiny's is the perfect spot after a ferry ride! Let me know when you're in town and we'll hit Steiny's together!

Hi Marty: Add me to the list of people who can't believe you had never been to Staten Island. The Ferry alone is worth the trip. I know that area, although I haven't been there in several years. There used to be 5 or 6 local bars within walking distance of the Ferry. I'm sure I've been to Steinie's under a different name.

Back in the 70's a friend and I would drive over from Brooklyn once a month to borrow records from the St George Library (right near the ferry), which had a huge vinyl lending library (it was famous for that). We'd then hit a local bar or two before heading back to Brooklyn to listen to our new music (blues, folk, rock, country, they had just about everything) and have a few more beers. Back in that day The Cargo Cafe was known as The Bay Cafe and it was very seedy and perfect for a few beers.

Here's a suggestion for your next trip. Leidy's Shore Cafe, 748 Richmond Terrace. A long walk or a short drive from the ferry. One of the oldest bars in NY City, virtually unchanged in 100 years, with a great jukebox to boot.

@Marty It has been a long strange trip indeed. On another foray from college we went down to Hudson St. where Timmy Leary had one of his League for Spiritual Discovery Centers. There were some weird ladies there. Gentle, but weird.